Monday 27 September 2010

Days Strider Mobility Scooters

Days Medical have redesigned their Strider range with six new models from the ultra light weight boot scooter the Strider ST1 to the heavy duty luxury of the Strider ST6.

Days Strider ST1

The Strider ST1 is an ultra lightweight boot scooter, the most interesting feature of which is the new split chassis. The split chassis allows you to take disassemble the chassis without having to fiddle with tools or connectors, this means that the ST1 can be broken down into even smaller pieces for travel or storage. To aid portability the heaviest piece of the ST1 is only 40 pounds. Of course all this comes at a price: the range of the ST1 is only 10 miles per charge. Probably perfect for shopping trips or short jaunts on holiday, but it is not the scooter to get if you are looking for it as your main mode of transport.

The Strider ST1 retails between £400 and £500.

Days Strider ST2

Now this is a strange one. The Strider ST2 is specced almost identically to the ST1, but offers a shorter range of a paltry 6.4 miles per charge. This may be a typo, our unusual honesty about range, but untill I can test it out I can't say, all I can say is for an extra £30-£40 pouns you seem to get an under powered ST1. Go figure.

The Strider ST2 retails between £450 and £550.

Days Strider ST3

The Strider ST3 is the top of the range travel mobility scooter from Days. Like the ST1 and ST2 the ST3 features the split chassis and light weight components. The ST3 is slightly wider than the other two giving it more stability and a greater weight capacity (21 stone versus 18 stone). The ST3 also has a more reasonable 15 mile range, putting it slightly ahead of the Go Go Traveller Plus and just behind the Sterling Pearl, both scooters in the same price range offering similar specifications.

The Strider ST3 retails between £750 and £850.

Days Strider ST4

One thing of note with this new Strider range is that Days Medical have decided to focus on either end of the mobility scooter market. The first three scooters are all boot scooters; the last three are all class three 8 mile an hour scooters.

The first of the class three scooters is the ST4. The ST4 is a compact 8 mile an hour scooter in the moul of the Mercury Neo or the Shoprider Cadiz. It is just over 50" long, and just under 25" wide, has a ground clearance of 3" and is supplied with full sized 11" pneumatic tires and full suspension both front and rear. The ST4 has a low centre of gravity, which keeps it feeling stable even during cornering.

The Strider ST3 retails between £750 and £850

Days Strider ST5

The Days Strider ST5 is a bariatric class mobility scooter. It has a huge maximum weight capacity of 35 1/2 stone, almost as much a the Mercury M48 GT. The Strider ST5 is like the ST4 on steroids: its wheels are a full two inches bigger; the batteries are 25Ah bigger; its range is 5 miles longer (30 miles to the ST4s 25) and it is ten inches longer and three inches wider. Unlike the ST4 the ST5 is supplied with a wrap around delta tiller that most people find more comfortable. The ST5 looks like being a good option for those who need a heavy weight mobility scooter without a heavyweight price tag.

The Strider ST3 retails between £1,500 and £1,700.

Days Strider ST6

The Strider ST6 is the top of the new Strider range, and it is a full sized luxury mobility scooter. The ST6 is clearly targeting the stylish end of the market that Heartway have made their own with the Royale and the Vita.

The ST6 is proportioned similarly to the Heartway Royale, and is only an inch longer at 63 inches. The ST6 has a greater total weight capacity of 35 ½ stone, and a greater stated range of 35 miles per charge (as ever take these figures with a pinch of salt; they are provided by the manufacturers!). The Strider ST 6 has excellent specs, and is supplied with 15" split rim alloy wheels with pneumatic tires, oil damped rear suspension, coil sprung front suspension, and an upholstered adjustable swivel reclining seat with headrest.

The Strider ST6 has one main advantage over the Royale: Price. The ST6 retails at around £2,900 which is a good two to three hundred pounds lower than the best real price on the Royale.